July 5, 2009:Manny Ramirez is back in left field for the Los Angeles Dodgers, who were in San Diego to play the Padres in his first series following a 50-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball's performance-enhancement drug policy, and he got mixed reviews from the fans. Some held signs that read "Welcome Back, Manny." Some held signs that read "Ram-Roid" and other drug-related inferences. For Ramirez and his teammates, it was what he did on the field that counted. His first game, July 3, was a 6-3 win over the Padres, during which he was 0-3 with a walk. In his second game, July 4, he homered in the first inning, his seventh homer of the year and the 534th of his career , tying Ramirez with Jimmie Foxx for 16th on the all-time list, but went 1-3 in a 7-4 loss. Game 3 in the series on July 5 saw Ramirez enter as a pinch-hitter in the 11th inning and fly out in the Dodgers' 13-inning 7-6 win.

Ramirez was among the top seven National League outfielders as voting for the 2009 All-Star Game ended. Although he had at one point been has high as fourth, Ramirez has still garnered more than 1.5million votes despite being suspended since early May for violating MLB's performance enhancement drug policy. The top three vote getters got automatic berths - the Philadelphia Phillies' Raul Ibanez, Milwaukee Brewers' Ryan Braun and Carlos Beltran of the New York Mets. Reserves named were Brad Hawpe (Colorado), Hunter Pence (Houston) and Justin Upton (Arizona). Ramirez' name also was not among the list of five National League players on the list tfrom which one will be selected by fans via online voting (which ends July 9 at 4 PM ET).

Ramirez returned to the Dodgers' line up in San Diego when L.A. began a nine-game road trip leading into the All-Star break, July 13-15. He is expected to get All-Star treatment when the Dodgers return home on July 16 for a series against Houston. The team has said it would reinstate "Mannywood," that section in left field used to sell tickets and Manny-related merchandise "directly based on our fans' interest," Dodgers president Dennis Mannion said recently. And although his income from endorsements is relatively low ($3-4 million annually, per analysts), marketers and fans have not chastised him in the way Michael Phelps was busted by some of his marketing partners after the infamous marijuana bong photo was published.

“I don’t think I need to give him any advice," Dodgers' manager Joe Torre told reporters recently. "He’s been pretty good because a lot of places he’ll get booed, he’ll get cheered. But it’s mainly booed because that’s usually what they do to good players when you go to different fields, ball clubs." Then Torre, who spent nearly a decade at the helm of the New York Yankees, added, "Whatever it is, it’s certainly going to be minor compared to what he’s going to have to face when we go to New York [to play the Mets July 7,8,9]."

Fans can vote until 4 p.m. ET on Thursday, July 9 in the Sprint Final Vote to determine which two players should be the 33rd and final members of their league's All-Star team. Fans voting online can choose from among these players